Further Adventures in Missing the Point
It seems like every time I browse through the titles in a Christian bookstore or in the Religious section of a chain bookstore, I always find something that strikes me as odd. Today it happened in the "Christian" section of a Barnes & Noble.
What is going on with all of these books about "evidence" that "demands" certain things and the "case" for various Christian-related ideas, events, etc.?
Honestly?
Are people's relationships with God so disconnected that they need some sort-of strict, rational reassurance that God really is out there? Or are people thinking that - if they can load up with enough quasi-judicial sounding "ammo" - that they can really stick it to their non-Christian acquaintances? And if they do "stick it" to their non-Christian acquaintances, do they really expect their humiliated opponents to start begging them for more information about Jesus?
Take it from someone who works in the "case making" business every day: the use of "evidence" that "demands" stuff from others is way overrated.
There is a level at which one's case and evidence are very important in our judicial system, but most lawsuits are driven by relationships, not evidence. The relationships between the parties, which normally begin to deteriorate long before a dispute develops between them. The relationships between lawyers and clients. The relationships between witnesses and parties. The relationships between judge and lawyer and, ultimately, between the jury and the parties. Tell me about how those relationships work, and I can do a pretty good job predicting how a lawsuit will go without knowing a single thing about the underlying dispute.
For all that matters, forget all of the other relationships. If you can just tell me which parties the jury LIKES and which ones they don't like, I can predict the outcome of a case most of the time.
My advice to anyone who is obsessed with making out the "case" for some aspect of their faith is this: lighten up. Walk with God, enter into genuine, authentic relationships with the people around you, even non-believers, and Kingdom stuff will start happening. Force feed this stuff to yourself and those around you, and you may end up like an obnoxious barrister who - in spite of having the perfect case - loses to the jury because he's a pompous smart alek.
Technorati Tags: Christian evidence, Christianity and law
What is going on with all of these books about "evidence" that "demands" certain things and the "case" for various Christian-related ideas, events, etc.?
Honestly?
Are people's relationships with God so disconnected that they need some sort-of strict, rational reassurance that God really is out there? Or are people thinking that - if they can load up with enough quasi-judicial sounding "ammo" - that they can really stick it to their non-Christian acquaintances? And if they do "stick it" to their non-Christian acquaintances, do they really expect their humiliated opponents to start begging them for more information about Jesus?
Take it from someone who works in the "case making" business every day: the use of "evidence" that "demands" stuff from others is way overrated.
There is a level at which one's case and evidence are very important in our judicial system, but most lawsuits are driven by relationships, not evidence. The relationships between the parties, which normally begin to deteriorate long before a dispute develops between them. The relationships between lawyers and clients. The relationships between witnesses and parties. The relationships between judge and lawyer and, ultimately, between the jury and the parties. Tell me about how those relationships work, and I can do a pretty good job predicting how a lawsuit will go without knowing a single thing about the underlying dispute.
For all that matters, forget all of the other relationships. If you can just tell me which parties the jury LIKES and which ones they don't like, I can predict the outcome of a case most of the time.
My advice to anyone who is obsessed with making out the "case" for some aspect of their faith is this: lighten up. Walk with God, enter into genuine, authentic relationships with the people around you, even non-believers, and Kingdom stuff will start happening. Force feed this stuff to yourself and those around you, and you may end up like an obnoxious barrister who - in spite of having the perfect case - loses to the jury because he's a pompous smart alek.
Technorati Tags: Christian evidence, Christianity and law
posted by Matt at Wednesday, November 09, 2005
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